It’s fast sunday and church today. Went with a personal favorite of mine, from the House of Chanel, specifically their Les Exclusifs line. It’s a classic smelling fragrance with a bold, timeless appeal. The line isn’t for everyone because they aren’t as modern focused and mass appealing as Bleu de Chanel or Allure Homme, but i think that’s what makes it special. It’s a powdery, spicy, amber scent, perfect for formal occasions. Longevity is fantastic, projection moderate, which fits scenarios like these even better. The ultimate scent for something noticeable but not overpowering. The opening notes are a powdery bitter orange and neroli blend, which immediately connects to a heart of strong patchouli, orris, and rose. Patchouli is dominant here, and acts as a fantastic, smoky bridge to the base, a blend of woods, incense, resins, and a unique note of white chocolate. Out of all the chanel’s i’ve tried, this is a personal favorite of mine. I like Coco, Platinum Egoiste, and I love Bleu de Chanel Parfum, mainly because it’s a more mature, sophisticated take on the Bleu line. I tried L’exclusif and found it a bit underwhelming for such a price. Enjoyed it, but still prefer the development of the Parfum. Coromandel combines the aspects i like of both fragrances, and gives it a classic, timeless appeal. This one did not disappoint at all. Blind buy safe? not so much, but it’s certainly signature scent worthy. Have i found this as a new signature? I’m still debating, but nonetheless, i love it.

Today's offering from the Jusbox Discovery Set is one of their bestsellers: the fruity and tropical Carioca Heart. Does it shine as brightly as the two preceeding scents? Early on, it does more than outshine... it actually threatens to eclipse. The topnotes of mango and pineapple are absolutely delicious. They're juicy, pulpy and natural, and incredibly moreish. There's a hint of lemon too, doing just enough to slash through the sweetness as the midnotes stake their claim. A note of rum absolute does add depth, but if I'm honest I find it a touch overwhelming. Whether that's due to an inherent weakness or more to do with the punch of the fruits remains to be seen. As things develop, there's a pleasing floral note that mixes with the fruitbomb sweetness. This basically informs the profile for the rest of its lifewspan, and as a consequence it's clear that Carioca Heart is definitely feminine-leaning. It does smell great, and it is ambiguous, but I feel it'd smell better on my wife than on me. It also fades into intimacy after about four hours, which is serviceable but hardly noteworthy. It's still around after half a day, mind, and it projects well early. All food for thought, at least. Overall, in my YES / NO / MAYBE scale of full bottle purchase chances, I'd have to give Carioca Heart a NO. It's not a confident no, and there's certainly a lot to be admired, but the pallate it presents is already on my shelf in many of the more improtant aspects. Other scents from the house already beat this off the blocks, and the question really boils down to if I'd spend £200 for an admittedly fantastic top note explosion. Unsurprisingly, I don't think I would. The playlist? Shorter and sweeter than the previous two, Carioca Heart musters up a breathy Euro-centric selection of soft melodious language-agnostic Jazz tunes. Stuff like The Girl From Ipanema, pleasant enough plinky plonky nonsense with about as much edge as a bucket full of jellyfish. Not my bag. Next up it's Cheeky Smile, with notes that look like a chemist's fever dream. It sounds ghastly. Can't wait!

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